Capping machine



Aug. 29, w R, B S

CAFPING MACHINE Filed Feb. 8, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l Aug. 29, 1933- w. R. ROBERTS CAPPING MACHINE Filed Feb. 8, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Aug. 29, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFicE Application February 8, 1930, Serial No. 427,040, and in Great Britain March 4, 1929 3 Claims. (Cl. 226-86) This invention relates to means for securing cap closures in situ over the mouths of bottles or other containers and refers more particularly to means for securing cap closures of simple cap formation adapted to be secured over the mouth of a complementary container formed with an overhanging shoulder around its neck, by virtue of the skirt of the cap having its edge inwardly turned so that it engages under said shoulder.

The object of the invention is the provision of improved means of this character and the invention consists broadly in the combination of a supporting device for surrounding the skirt of the cap and an axially movable element for sub--' sequently forcing the lower portion of the skirt hard against said shoulder.

In order that the invention may be the more clearly understood a machine in accordance therewith will now be described reference being made to the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of said machine.

Figure 2 is a sectional side elevation to an enlarged scale of the operating head of said machine viewed from the back of Figure 1, a con- 29 tainer and cap being shown in place.

Figure 3 is an under plan of said operating head to the same scale as Figure 2, the con tainer and cap being removed.

Thus referring to the drawings the machine comprises three die segments 1 adapted to close in around the skirt of the cap 0, and a pressure element 2 adapted subsequently to press down on the top of said cap. The container 11. is adapted to be held in position by the hand or by other yielding means such as a spring actuated table with the cap 0 pressed up against the pressure element 2, and the operative surfaces of the segments 1 have their lower portions Z inwardly inclined as shown, so that when said segments have closed around the skirt of the cap the'subsequent downward movement of the pressure element 2 will effect the bending of the lower edge of the skirt under the shoulder s formed round said container neck.

Said pressure element 2 is located just inside the lower end of a fixed vertical bearing 3 in the form, as shown, of a tube of varying diameter and depends from an enlarged head 4a formed on the lower end of a vertically reciprocable plunger rod 4. Said element 2 is secured to said head 4a by means of a joint which permits the plane of the lower or operative surface of said element 2 to vary its angle universally so that it may accommodate itself to any irregularity of angle of the upper surface of the container lip. This joint consists of a ball 5, which maintains said head 4a and said pressure element 2 apart and a nut 6 which draws them 'together to the limit permitted by said ball 5. Said ball 5 nestsin part spherical hollows in the lower surface of the head. 4a and the upper surface of the pressure element 2 respectively and the nut 6 screws into engagement with the pressure element as shown and draws the same and the head 4a together by the engagement of a concavo-spherical surface in the inside of said nut with a conveXo-spherical surface on the outside ofsaid head as shown. These latter surfaces are concentric with the ball 5 and thus the pressure element 2 is free to oscillate universally about the centre of said ball. I

Said plunger rod 4 bears in a thrust sleeve '7 which in turn bears in the reduced upper portion of the fixed vertical bearing 3. Said thrust sleeve '7 is formed with a downwardly facing shoulder 7a which rests upon the upper end of a powerful thrust spring 8 coiled about the plunger rod 4 and resting at its lower end upon the enlarged head 4a.

An actuating element 9 having a tubular skirt which bears on the outside of the fixedvertical bearing 3 is connected, in a manner which will be clear from the drawings, to a lever 10 fulcrumed at 11, in such a way as to be reciprocable vertically in response to the oscillations of said lever. This actuating element 9 has a horizontal surface 12 which during the range of reciprocation bears down upon a thrust washer 13 on the upper end of the thrust sleeve '7 and forces said thrust sleeve downwards. 0

The upper end of the plunger rod 4 projects beyond the upper end of the sleeve '7 and of the actuating element 9 and said'plunger rod is biased upwards with respect to said actuatingelement by means of a helical spring 14 sur- 5 rounding the upper end of said rod and in compression between'a nut 15 screwed on the upper end of said rod and a nut 16 screwed on the upper end of said actuating element. The upward movement of said rod 4 is limited by the engagement of an upwardly facing shoulder 2a on the pressure element 2 with a downwardly facing shoulder 3a on the bearing 3.

The three die segments 1 are carried in the suitably shaped enlarged lower ends 17a of respective levers 17 which are oscillatable each about a fixed pivot pin 18 supported between bosses 19 formed on guide lugs 20 on the two sides of the lever, which guide lugs are cast integrally with the bearing 3. Said levers 17 are biased so that said segments 1 tend to spring outwards and the upper ends of the levers inwards. These upper ends carry rollers 21 which press against a cam surface 22 formed on the outside of the skirt of the actuating element 9.

The lever 10 is adapted to be oscillated by means of a treadle 23 through the medium of link mechanism part of which is shown in Figure 1 and the remainder of which is concealed within the massive stand 24 to which the bearing element 3 is rigidly secured. as shown. Ihe arrangement is such that when said treadle 23 is depressed, the actuating element 9 moves downwards and when said treadle is released said actuating element returns to its upper position.

With the parts in their normal position therefore, the actuating element 9 is at its upper limit; the shoulder 2a is in engagement with the shoulder 3a owing to the spring 14; the spring 8 is uncompressed (except for the negligible weight of the thrust sleeve 7), there being a considerable clearance between the surface 12 and the thrust washer 13. Moreover owing to the actuating element being at its upper position the roller 21 rests on the lower (or smaller diameter) portion of the cam surface 22 so that the die segments are sprung outwardly.

With the parts in this position the container n with the cap 0 in place held with said cap between the die segments and pressing up against the pressure element 2; the treadle is then depressed so that the actuating element 9 performs its down stroke.

During the first part of said down stroke, the rollers 21 are forced outwards by the cam surface 22 and the die segments 1 are accordingly forced inwards against the skirt of the cap 0. The position is now asshown in Figure 2, the

I arrangement being such that said segments just engage said skirt but do not exert enough pressure to involve the risk of crushing the container neck.

Just after the die segments have reached this position the surface 12 on'the actuating element 9 meets the thrust washer 13 and the thrust sleeve 7 is accordingly moved downwards. This downward movement compresses the powerful spring 8 and this forces down the plunger rod 1 4, pressure element 2, cap 0 and container n to a limited position determined by the shoulder 5 meeting the portions Z of the surfaces of the die segments. During the downward movement of the cap the edge of the skirt thereof is bentinwardly by the surfaces Z and is finally pressed against the shoulder s when the cap and container reach the limited down position aforesaid.

When the actuating element 9 reaches its down position the full load of the compressed spring 8Which is of large magnitudeis supported by the material of the container (usually glass) between the shoulder s and the rim, but as this material is solid it is capable of withstanding the said load.

It will thus be seen that the cap is sealed on the container by first a relatively small pressure inwards around .the skirt, which pressure does little more than prevent the skirt bulging outwards and second a large axial pressure forcing the edge of the skirt inwards by virtue of the inclined surfaces Z of the die segments.

Normally the die segments, when at their inner position engage with one another to form a continuous and undivided ring.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:-

1. A machine for securing closures of cap formation over the mouths of containers formed with an overhanging shoulder, comprising a plurality of levers pivoted between their ends, die segments carried at one end of the respective levers, a reciprocating element having cam surfaces on the outside thereof engaging with the other ends of said levers so that as said element moves in one direction said other ends are moved outwardly and said die segments are closed inwardly around the skirt of the cap, a pressure head, a spring interposed between said pressure head and said reciprocating element so that as said reciprocating element continues moving in the aforesaid direction beyond the point at which said die segments are moved to the fully closed position, said pressure head is pressed through the medium of said spring on the top of the cap, thereby moving the cap and bottle relative to said segments and bending the lower portion of the skirt of said cap inwards between the shoulder and inwardly projecting portions of the die segments.

2. A machine for securing closuresof cap formation over the mouths of containers formed with an overhanging shoulder, comprising a plurality of levers pivoted between their ends, die segments carried at one end of the respective levers, a reciprocating element having cam surfaces on the outside thereof engaging with the other ends of said levers so that as said element moves in one direction said other ends are moved outwardly and said die segments are closed inwardly around the skirt of the cap, a universally pivoted pressure head, a spring interposed between said pressure head and said reciprocating element so that as said reciprocating element continues moving in the aforesaid direction beyond the point at which said die segments are moved to the fully closed position, said pressure head is pressed through the medium of said spring on the top of the cap, thereby moving the cap and bottle'relative to said segments and bending the lower portion of the skirt of said cap inwards between said shoulder and-inwardly projecting portions of the die segments. 7

3. A machine for securing closures of cap formation over the mouths of containers formed with an overhanging shoulder, comprising a plurality of die segments adapted to close upon, and open from the skirt of the cap, a pressurehead adapted to press on the top of said cap, a reciproea ing element, independent power transmissions between said reciprocating element and said segments and pressure head respectively, the former transmission being positive, and being adapted, as said reciprocating elementmoves in one direction, to effect closure of said segments, and the latter transmission comprising a spring and beadapted as said reciprocating element continues moving in the aforesaid direction beyond the point at, which the die segments are moved to the fully closed position, to press said pressure head through the medium of said spring on the top of the cap, thereby moving the cap and bottle relative to said se ments and bending the lower portion of the skirt of said cap inwards between the shoulder and inwardly projecting portions of the die segments.

WILLIAM REUBEN ROBERTS 

